Inside My Brainhttp://www.mikewchan.com
Thoughts about startups, tech, sports, and lifeFri, 08 Dec 2017 14:31:53 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.0.1In poker, business, and life, there’s only one real way to learn – by doinghttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/12/learnbydoing/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/12/learnbydoing/#commentsFri, 08 Dec 2017 14:31:53 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2775I took the last two weeks off from blogging because I was traveling for Thanksgiving to NY/NJ and the Amazon Web Services re:Invent conference in Vegas. I hope you didn’t miss me too much. Anyway, while in Vegas, I of course had to hit up the poker table. Many times. During one late night/early morning […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/12/learnbydoing/feed/1The Two Sides of Ambitionhttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/twosidesofambition/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/twosidesofambition/#commentsFri, 17 Nov 2017 16:45:18 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2768The above quote is one of my favorite, because it is so true. Ambition is one of the most powerful motivators. The determination to succeed and win can drive you to great heights. Some of the most successful people in the world did not crush it right out of the gate. Vincent Van Gogh only sold […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/twosidesofambition/feed/0When quantity is better than qualityhttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/quantity-trumps-quality/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/quantity-trumps-quality/#commentsFri, 10 Nov 2017 02:45:02 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2749I believe that in many situations, quantity is more beneficial than quality. About a year and a half ago, I wrote an article titled “Quality vs. Quantity – which should you focus on?“, where I questioned whether quantity or quality is more important in marketing and startups. This argument clearly struck a chord, as that […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/quantity-trumps-quality/feed/0Where do you get your energy from?http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/gives-energy/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/gives-energy/#commentsFri, 03 Nov 2017 00:52:41 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2755I recently listened to an episode of The Growth Show podcast and the guest was Noah Kagan, CEO of Sumo.com and AppSumo. The episode was primarily about how Noah was continually learning new skills and how he went about doing so. A lot of that learning advice was valuable, but the one thing that stuck […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/11/gives-energy/feed/0“We’ll figure it out” means you probably won’thttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/well-figure-means-probably-wont/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/well-figure-means-probably-wont/#commentsFri, 27 Oct 2017 13:37:03 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2751I hear and use the phrase “we’ll figure it out” very often. And that usually means that whatever needs figuring out typically won’t be figured out. Whenever that phrase is spoken, the topic is usually something that isn’t that urgent nor important, so it gets deferred until a later time. Or it never gets talked about […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/well-figure-means-probably-wont/feed/0Using your commute time productivelyhttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/using-commute-time-productively/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/using-commute-time-productively/#commentsFri, 20 Oct 2017 14:00:15 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2744Commuting sucks. It can be stressful and draining, and you literally lose sleep because of it. I’m pretty lucky that I only have long commutes two days a week. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have to drive out to Columbia, MD from DC, and half of that ride I’m with my wife because I drop […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/using-commute-time-productively/feed/1More on Reps and Sets and doing little things everydayhttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/reps-sets-little-things-everyday/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/reps-sets-little-things-everyday/#commentsFri, 13 Oct 2017 13:08:00 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2741A couple of weeks ago I wrote about Reps and Sets – how repetition and making little improvements everyday can make a big impact in the long run. Recently, I was watching The Herd, a sports talk show with Colin Cowherd. I forget what the context of the sports conversation was, but Colin was making […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/reps-sets-little-things-everyday/feed/0Slack, distractions, and Twisthttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/slack-distractions-twist/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/slack-distractions-twist/#commentsFri, 06 Oct 2017 14:27:08 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2732If you read this blog, you know that I’m all about finding ways to increase productivity and minimize distractions. And the more and more I use Slack, the more I hate it because it’s a constant stream of distractions. I’m not alone. See here, here, and here. Don’t get me wrong – Slack is an […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/10/slack-distractions-twist/feed/0Reps and Setshttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/09/reps-sets/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/09/reps-sets/#commentsFri, 29 Sep 2017 13:18:05 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2725I interviewed David Cancel, Co-founder and CEO of Drift, for my podcast a while ago. Drift just raised $32 million from top-tier investors, and he has started 5 companies. The guy knows what he’s doing. One of the things he always talks about is “reps and sets.” Reps & Sets. The simple secret that most avoid. […]

]]>http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/09/reps-sets/feed/0Success doesn’t happen overnighthttp://www.mikewchan.com/2017/09/overnight-successes/
http://www.mikewchan.com/2017/09/overnight-successes/#commentsFri, 22 Sep 2017 20:18:33 +0000http://www.mikewchan.com/?p=2718I keep telling myself that. AirBNB is a massive success, and it feels like they got there overnight. But according to CEO Brian Chesky, their “overnight” success took a little longer than that. Gary Vaynerchuk talks about this all the time. The guy is absolutely everywhere today, but it has taken him over a decade […]